Sleepytime

Note: The video for this story is NSFW and shows the surgery performed on the artist. If you’re not squeamish, you can view the video here or click on the photo to be redirected.

Artist Sruli Recht has concocted some pretty unusual projects which often focus on the materials he uses as much as what the final product will be. The Israeli-born, Reykjavík-based artist refuses to allow himself to be branded in any particular group of fashion designers, having used pixelated rabbit fur, tanned stillborn lamb leather, and horse skin.

The above piece? Well, that’s a one-of-a-kind ring made from his own skin, which he salted and tanned after a surgeon removed the 110mmx10mm piece of flesh from Recht’s abdomen. The leather was then wrapped around a 24 karat gold band and sold for €350,000 to a buyer who will also receive a certificate of DNA and a DVD showing the making of the ring.

As for the video…It’s a big, huge glass of nope from me. And I know there are Lord of the Rings jokes just waiting to be made.

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nonerkylie
Nona and Kylie are butt-kicking web mods who are dedicated to curating the finest internet content.

JeremiahCatclaw

The line between art and insanity is pretty blurry, but I’m pretty sure this one went over the horizon on the crazy side…

ilovellamas

I’m adding this to my list. Previous entries were:
– The woman who intentionally impregnated herself through artificial insemination 9 times, and then induced 9 abortions via drugs. And then made an art piece with a bunch of blood and videos of the abortions.

– The woman who put on a wedding dress and hitchhiked east, through the Balkans and to the middle east, trying to do a piece on love (very sad ending, but incredibly crazy).

– The man who tied up and starved a dog on display as an art piece.

This guy is now added to my list. All different brands of crazy, but insane nonetheless.

The video really isn’t that bad. The first bit of blood is the worst part but by the end he’s cleaned up and stitched up enough that they just cover the wound with a regular band-aid.

Julia

The thing to remember with a lot of contemporary works of art is that often the meaning behind or the purpose of the piece is in the way that the viewer reacts and interacts with it. In this case it would be helpful to think about why you react the way that you do rather than thinking about why the artist did this. Why exactly do you find it disgusting or disturbing?

With this piece in particular, I’m comparing my reaction towards it with my feelings towards animal leather, fur, ivory, etc. and even the use of diamonds that were mined by abused and purposefully disfigured workers.

Fwiw, the question that stands out for me is not what the artist was meaning, but why the buyer thought it was worth $500,000 to own.

Julia

Ooo, good take on the situation. Play a little devil’s advocate with the idea. Isn’t value determined by rarity? This is one of only a few pieces of human leather in the world (probably the only one that is legal to own).

350,000 Euros? Wow. I’m entirely unsure whether i’d be prepared to go through unnecessary (i’m guessing, being too scared to watch the video) surgery for that type of sum… Definitely tempting. Is it general anaesthetic? ‘cos that’s a risk in itself from what i’ve heard.

cdn_bakun

Okay, number one here is that the piece of skin is 110mm X 10mm, NOT by 110mm as posted. That’s quite a big difference. Just to be clear, that’s 4.39 inches X 0.39 inches. Your mom’s got scars bigger than that (likely).

Secondly, I was expecting to see something like this (maybe closer to that 110mm X 110mm) resulting from those Russian suspension nutjobs on yesterday’s posts…..

Actuallly this is a good example of the difference between a plastic surgeon and a doctor. A doctor couldn;t have done this surgery due to the hippocratic oath. A plastic surgeon on the other hand is just a guy with medical equipment.

They are trained as a doctor but they don’t take the oath or they couldn’t do what they do. Primum non nocere can’t apply when are doing surgery for vanity not medicial reasons. Some plastic surgeons are vital in actual medical cases (reconstruction of deformities and injuries) but they are a minority in the field.

Uhmmm…

I’m not sure you’re correct in your assertion that plastic, or as most physicians who practice in that field call themselves, cosmetic surgeons don’t take the Hippocratic oath. I’m relatively sure all physicians take that oath no matter what specialty the choose. Do you have a link to a reputable source that states otherwise?

Uhmmm…

Yep. Just confirmed with my brother, a physician, that all doctors must take the oath no matter what type of medicine they choose to practice. It doesn’t make sense really that cosmetic surgeons would be different. Just because surgery is elective doesn’t mean it’s necessarily harmful and frankly, wouldn’t you want to know that the person doing your breast implants or rhinoplasty is held to the same standard as all physicians?

All doctors do not take the oath. “There is currently no legal obligation for medical students to swear an oath upon graduating, 98% of American medical students swear some form of oath, while only 50% of British medical students do.” It varies vastly from justistiction to juristiction. “Some form of oath” isn’t necessarily the hippocratic. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1121898/

DanielCopeland

One ring to rule them, one ring to find them.
One ring to bring them all, and in the darkne-BLEEEAAARRRGH